Secret deal on the Downs

We have supported the Downs for People in Bristol in its exposure of a secret deal between Bristol City Councillors and the Merchant Venturers to allow Bristol Zoo to continue to use the magnificent Durdham Downs for car parking until 2039.  The society has opposed the parking for many years; the council’s renewal of the…

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How to subscribe to our You Tube Channel

YouTube is a video sharing channel where users can watch, like, share, comment and upload their own and other people’s videos. It works in a similar way to other social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter in that respect. You Tube can be accessed on PCs, laptops, tablets and via mobile phones. We will…

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Ellen’s decade as the hub of our office

We are fortunate that Ellen Froggatt, who was planning to retire in early April, is still with us.  She has generously agreed to carry on as office manager part-time until we can return to the office and appoint a replacement.  Consequently, Ellen celebrated ten years with the society on 7 June. In her time with…

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Threat withdrawn to ancient road in South Downs National Park

We are delighted that Mr Hugh Sandie of Pegs and Pitches Camping has withdrawn his planning application for a campsite and buildings near Coldwaltham, West Sussex, in the South Downs National Park. The society objected to the development arguing that it conflicted with the purposes of the national park and would have an adverse impact…

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Vocal for local

Our general secretary Kate Ashbrook considers life for the Open Spaces Society during lockdown. As lockdown began, I foolishly thought we would have time to catch up with all those long-deferred jobs.  I was wrong: we have been busier than ever. Developers are not deterred by a pandemic: open spaces remain at risk, perhaps more…

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Hanwell land-grab

Hanwell fence The fence after local people had broken through to the canal

Our member Steven Toft describes the fight by Hanwell residents to wrest their open space from land-grabbers In April 2019, residents of Hanwell in Ealing, west London, were dismayed that part of their park had been fenced off. St Margaret’s open space sits by the Grand Union Canal and is part of Brent River Park.…

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Our Campaigning Works in North Cornwall

Our local correspondents are never ones to give up on a challenge! Lucy Wilson, our volunteer for north Cornwall tells the story of how Poundstock footpath 7  came to be fully restored to public use. ‘This is one that Bob Fraser (of Cornwall Ramblers) passed on to me in 2018 after a local resident got…

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Archive progress

The Special Collections team at the University of Reading and the Museum of English Rural Life (the MERL) has been working with the society to care for, and to open, our archive to the public and to potential researchers. The completed cataloguing work, and the collected oral histories of key staff members, will reveal our…

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People on foot lose out to cars in M42 road scheme

We are deeply disappointed that the Secretary of State for Transport, Mr Grant Shapps, has ignored the needs of pedestrians and approved a major scheme for the improvement of Junction 6 of the M42 in the West Midlands. The society is concerned that the development will sever principal routes running east-west and to Birmingham International…

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